GARO: Wolves of UA
by Azure Dragon of the East
Summary: Where there is light, shadows lurk and fear reigns. But by the blade of knights, mankind was given hope. In a super-powered world, heroes and villains alike will learn that the hard way.
1. Chapter 1

"Speech"

_Narration_

'_Thoughts'_

"_**Horror Speech"**_

"**All Might Speech"**

"**Zaruba Speech"**

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**_

* * *

A clear, quiet evening for the city of Musutafu…

_It's the witching hour… _

…a sprawling municipal center…

… _a time for fear…_

…home to many that live day to day in peaceful bliss…

…_of all things that dwell in the shadows…_

… for this city is home to many heroes!

…_hungering for the living._

Atop one of the many high rises, a lone figure squatted on the roof's edge like a gargoyle. The most distinguishing feature, and only noticeable in the darkness, was that he was clad in a white and black duster; a hood covered his head thus obscuring his face. The figure then stood up and leaped off the roof into the horizon.

* * *

Kamui Woods and Death Arms found themselves in quite the bind. Before them was a low level villain with a blade finger quirk who had just pinned a rather attractive young woman to the wall of an alley. The villain ran one of his blades lightly across the crying woman's face as he smirked.

_Yet as you lay in bed…_

"Try anything and I'll slice this pretty little thing into sashimi!" the villain said sadistically.

…_watching the shadows for something to move… ponder this:_

Death Arms growled in frustration.

"Don't think for instant that you'll escape justice, villain!" Kamui Woods exclaimed.

… _What do you think the darkness fears?_

"I'm only gonna say this once…" a new voice came.

All eyes turned to the source: a young boy, if the tone of voice was any indication, in a hooded white and black duster, cargo pants and boots standing behind the two heroes at the alleyway entrance.*

"…step away from the humans."

'_What the hell is this kid thinking!?'_ Death Arms wondered in confusion and concern.

The last thing they need is some rookie or vigilante making things worse. The villain present, however, had something to say about the boy's warning.

"Tough guy, huh? And if I don't?"

In response, the unknown youth slowly raised his right arm; his hand clenched in a fist. Death Arms grew worried that this kid was gonna do something reckless that would put the girl in danger.

"I wasn't talking to you," he said.

The boy opened his middle, ring and pinkie fingers; allowing a small bell to drop. The drop made the bell let out a ring that no one could hear; no one save for the girl. Her eyes glowed a bright purple, she started to spasm as they rolled into the back of her head; catching the attention of the villain and heroes present. She turned her head around and around until, with a sickening crack, the head performed a perfect 360; her mouth now formed into a nightmare-inducing Glasgow smile with needle like teeth. The villain backed away in shock until he was within arm's length of the heroes yet the two didn't act; too engrossed at the sudden turn of events.

The 'woman's' arm suddenly elongated with her fingers becoming wicked and dirty looking claws. 'She' tried to swipe at the closest body, the villain, but was forced away by the boy delivering a powerful kick to the face.

"You might wanna run," the boy said; the claw villain needed no further encouragement as he ran to the alley's entrance before being dogpiled by Death Arms and Kamui Woods.

"_**You ruined my meal, boy!"**_

'She' swung at the hooded boy only for him to pull a sword from his coat to deflect the attack. 'Her' other arm shifted to match the transformed one and tried again but met with same result. The two heroes saw this as a signal to back away with the captured villain. Though they knew they should be rescuing the boy from this monster, it was evident that he knew what he was doing; not to mention that he was aware that the 'woman' they had tried to save earlier was anything but and had the means to expose 'her.' And on the subject of the 'woman,' they had never seen a Quirk like this; that is if it even was a Quirk.

The boy blocked another strike as he slid backwards from the force.

"_**Since I lost those three, you will have to do to sate my hunger!"**_

"I don't think so," the boy said before holding his sword over his head then drew a circle of light. When he brought it down, something came down and formed on the boy.

He was now clad in a black bodysuit with ornate gold armor and a helmet in the likeness of a snarling wolf with long ears, fangs and green gem on the forehead. A gorget around the neck attached to gold chest plate armor surrounding his upper body and he had some gold shoulder guards and a green gem was on the center. All over his arms were gold armor with guards on top the bracers on the forearms. A skull themed emblem was on the left fist. On his legs were gold leg armor and gold armored boots and around his waist was a gold belt with a red triangle with gold outlines. Attached to the back was a black cape with two extra strips of cloth tied to golden rings in the ends. In his right hand was a golden broadsword with a red triangle. His eyes were a bright green that bore into the Horror's core. ******

"_**The Golden Knight Garo!?"**_ 'she' exclaimed in shock.

The 'woman's' body then began to inflate before it burst, revealing a creature that looked like the unholy spawn of the Little Shop of Horror's plant and an iron maiden.

"**The Horror Asmodei, it likes to play the damsel in distress to lure in prey,"** a voice from the golden knight's left hand said.

The now named Asmodei let out a roar as it charged the armored youth. Garo responded in kind, charging while scraping the tip of his sword along the ground. Asmodei then leapt to the side wall before pushing off in a dive to its golden foe. Garo raised his sword to guard against the incoming slash before deflecting it away as his enemy touched the ground. Undeterred, the monster lashed out with a whip like blade but the young knight somersaulted over it. Faster than the monster could think of a counter, Garo landed on his feet and sliced the weapon arm off before grabbing it by the 'face' and hurling it at a dumpster.

Asmodei shook off the dizziness and leapt again, this time at the golden knight; knocking him on his back. Garo was having none of it as he delivered a series of kicks to the beast's abdomen with the last one throwing it off. Asmodei was sent flying but grabbed the edge of the roof to stop itself. During this, Garo got on his feet and pulled an ornate lighter, of all things, out of nowhere. With a quick flick, he lit it, producing a green flame and ran it across his sword, setting the blade on fire. Asmodei then threw itself at its armored foe while Garo ran at the wall before spring boarding off it at the monster.

It all happened so fast. One moment the two were mere inches away from a final clash. The next, the monster was now being burned alive by the green fire from Garo's sword. And through it all, the two pro-heroes watched in morbid fascination. The monster collapsed between the armored boy and the spectators as its body began to disintegrate from the flames, even ashes burned up. Garo gave the two heroes a side glance before he walked off. The two heroes weren't sure if they should try and stop him but they wouldn't get the chance for when a flicker of the green fire obscured the golden knight for but a moment; he disappeared.

Just as the last of the flames died out, the two heroes regained their wits as the events replayed in their minds. Death Arms was the first to get his voice back.

"What the hell was all that?"

"I don't know, it was like something out of a horror movie," Kamui answered.

"And that woman, what kind of a Quirk was that?"

"Honestly, I don't think it was Quirk; I don't think she was even human."

Death Arms rubbed the bridge of his nose as he sighed.

"Just when you thought you'd seen it all. I think I need a drink."

"As much as I agree, we're gonna need to be sober. We got that new girl, Takeyama, starting tomorrow."

"How do we file the report on this one?" Death Arms asked with a groan as he grabbed the detained villain.

* * *

After dismissing his armor, the youth had ran across the rooftops to put distance between him and the heroes, last thing he needed was to be interrogated about they just witnessed. Once he was sure he was far enough away, the mystery boy pulled back the hood, revealing curly black-green hair sitting atop a young freckled face, soft emerald green eyes that belie the iron firm drive and focus within. This was the true face of Garo, Izuku Midoriya.

_**Fanfiction Presents**_

_I learned two things when I was four years old. The first, all men are not created equal; some are born with more power than others._

"Sorry kid, it's not gonna happen," the doctor said bluntly.

A younger Izuku stared blankly at the doctor, as if he was just told him he was going to die.

"Oh dear, is something wrong with him after all? Most of the other kindergarteners have already started to show signs," the boy's mother, one Inko Midoriya asked.

"My records show you're a fourth generation Quirk-user, what powers do you and the boy's father have?"

"Nothing too special, I can pull small things toward me and my husband breathes fire. They're useful enough, I suppose."

_It all began when a newborn child in China began to glow radiantly with no explanation. Not long after, people began to develop abilities straight out of comic books all over the world. These 'Quirks' sparked a change in society; what was once impossible was now the norm. Everyone had a superpower to call their own and as a result, there were those who exploited them for selfish gains and those who utilized them as a force for justice and peace._

_Or rather, almost everyone._

"Izuku should've already manifested one or a combination of these by now but after reviewing his x-ray, I don't think that's gonna happen."

_Roughly 80% of the population has a Quirk and those without one tend to be looked down upon. I should know… because I'm one of those without a quirk. Why? Because I had two joints in my pinkie toe where as everyone else had one. My dream was to be a hero just like my idol, All Might; the greatest pro-hero in the world. But the day I learned that I wouldn't ever develop a Quirk, I felt like my heart had been torn in two. _

After the doctor's visit, the two returned home. Izuku practically secluded himself into his room, watching his favorite video.

"See that, mom? He's always smiling…even when things look bad. Even when things seem impossible, he never gives up."

The boy turned to his mother and the sight that greeted her ripped her soul to shreds.

"Do you think… I could be a hero like him?" he asked as tears threatened to flood out.

_**An Azure Dragon of the East Production**_

_The next day, when everyone at school found out about me being Quirkless, I was ostracized and ridiculed first by the kids then their parents. Some of it even was directed at my parents._

Hisashi Midoriya had just walked in as his wife greeted him. She relayed everything that had happened, she was in tears at how quickly the neighbors had turned on them, calling their boy a failure for life.

"Hisashi… what do we do?" she asked.

_And when I was at my lowest, my father stepped forward._

"I may know a way."

Inko returned her attention to her husband.

"I may know a way for our son to be a hero like he dreamed. But…"

He held up his left hand, gazing at the skull-like ring on his finger. In an instant, she realized what Hisashi was talking about.

"…it means that I have to break a promise to you."

Izuku laid on his bed, his tears dried up after another day of harassment at school. He heard his door open, he didn't move to see who. He felt someone sit on his bed, he didn't turn to greet them.

"Son… do you want to be a hero _that_ much?"

Izuku didn't even flinch, was his father gonna shred what was left of his heart, too?

"Do you want to be one… even if it means that no one knows? That no one is _allowed_ to know?"

_That_ got a reaction.

"Dad, what are you saying?" he asked as Hisashi looked at his progeny with sad yet hardened eyes.

"I know a way to be a different kind of hero. However, you will remain hidden; a shadow in the blackest night. You will be a ghost to those you help. Any and all trace of your deeds will be erased from the public's eye. And above all, you will face nightmares made flesh; things so terrifying that even All Might himself would tremble."

Izuku stared in disbelief and confusion.

"So I ask again, do you want to be a hero _that_ much?"

_**Based on characters created by Keita Amemiya and Kōhei Horikoshi**_

_It was there that the second thing I learned was that the world has more troubles than people realize. There is a darker world, hidden in the background where monsters dwell and feast on humans. These monsters are called Horrors. When a human heart embraces evil, Horrors pass into our world, possessing those who invite them and killing them in the process; wearing their skin like a suit. Such vile, poisonous creatures have been hunted since time out of mind by a secret group, the Makai Order, and their main fighting force: The Makai Knights._

_And the strongest knight in their ranks is the Golden Knight, Garo… that's me._

The next morning found Izuku in dark room, now wearing a school uniform. He drew his sword and stabbed it into the mouth of a wolf statue. A second or two passed before Izuku removed the blade and sheathed it. From the bottom of the statue, a small black dagger materialized before a young girl in a French maid outfit stepped forward and placed it in a wooden box.

The two then turned to the third person in the room. She was white-haired buxom beauty in a Lolita costume that could nearly any man quiver in lust. This was the Watchdog of the district, Fenris.

"That's another one. How many does that make now?" she asked.

"Nine… this week," Izuku said between a yawn.

"**The Horrors have been rather active lately."**

Izuku raised his left hand, showing the skull ring on his middle finger, this was the Madogu, Zaruba.

"And the local heroes don't make things any easier."

"**A shame Quirks can't help in this"**

_When Quirks first emerged, the order quickly researched their effectiveness on Horrors, however, they soon learned that Horrors were immune to most Quirks outside of basic body enhancement types and some elementals. Soul Metal was also found to be resistant to many Quirks, making combinations somewhat difficult without trial and error._

"Since Zaruba brought it up…"

Izuku returned his attention to Fenris as she spoke.

"…The senate held an assembly yesterday about the spike in Horrors."

"And?"

"After a rather lengthy argument, one possible solution they presented was to reveal ourselves to and work with the local governments and the hero community."

"I think that's a bad idea," Izuku said with a scowl.

"You're not the only one but every knight, priest and watchdog are getting run ragged with so many horrors appearing. This will allows us to move more freely. In theory, that is."

"Or it could lead to a witch hunt."

"Regardless, no verdict has been reached yet. For now, maintain your cover as a student and get some rest. It's a wonder you haven't collapsed from exhaustion, even if you are the golden knight."

"I'll be lucky if I don't fall asleep in class."Izuku muttered sardonically as he turned and left.

He stepped out into the street after the entrance to the Watchdog's den closed, leaving nothing but an unassuming wall. Izuku gave another yawn as he walked to school.

'_But rest does sound good. I haven't had a good night's sleep in-'_

His thoughts were interrupted by a cry of "CANYON CANNON!" followed by a loud crash.

He turned to the source to find what he assumed to be a villain on the receiving end of a flying kick by a titan of a woman in spandex. The crowd nearby began snapping picture after picture, particularly at her backside.

"Piece of cake for the next hottest hero."

"Hi everyone, I'm Mt. Lady and you don't have to worry about this _bum_ anymore," she emphasized the 'bum' part via presenting her own in a provocative way; much to the crowd's enjoyment.

'_Oh brother,'_ Izuku glared, exasperated at that dumb pun. He paid it no further mind as he made his way to school.

* * *

"Now that you're in your third year of Junior High, it's time to start thinking about your futures," the teacher declared.

Izuku could tell where this was going and saw no point in listening in. His eyelids became heavier and heavier until they closed.

"I could pass out some career aptitude tests…" The teacher snatch them up with a smirk, "…but why bother?"

He then threw them away behind him.

"I know you all wanna go into the Hero track!"

The student went into an uproar, showing off their Quirks. Izuku by this point had already fallen asleep, softly snoring yet no one noticed.

"Yes, yes, you all have some impressive Quirks. But no power usage in school," the teacher lightly admonished.

"Hey teach, don't lump me in with this bunch of losers," one male student boasted, "I'm the real deal but these extra will be lucky to end up as sidekicks to some busted D-Lister."

The student let out condescending laugh. He had ash blond hair that stood up in all directions and red eyes that stared down everyone in the room like they were beneath him. This was Katsuki Bakugo. In response to his rather haughty attitude, the other students raged at him but he paid them no mind.

"Ah Bakugo, you've got some impressive test scores. Maybe you _will_ get into U.A. High"

"He's going for the national school?"

"That place has 0.2% acceptance rate."

"It's impossible to get in!"

"That's why it's the only school for me," Bakugo countered smugly as hopped onto the top of his desk.

"I aced all the mock tests. I'm the only one at this school who stands a chance of getting in. I'll end up more famous than All Might himself and be the richest hero that ever lived! Everyone across the world will know who I am and it all starts with U.A. High!" Bakugo declared like he knew exactly how things would turn out.

The teacher however noted something in his list.

"The only one who hasn't said anything is Midoriya."

There was moment of silence as all eyes turned to the still sleeping Izuku, his head propped up by his right hand, before the rest of the class burst out laughing, jolting the green-haired boy awake. The only one not laughing was Bakugo as he stared at his old childhood friend.

"Midoriya?"

"What could he possibly do?"

"You'll never get anywhere without a Quirk."

"Who's doing what without a Quirk?" Izuku asked groggily.

"You'll never get anywhere in life without Quirk, let alone be a hero," said one student with stone for hair.

Izuku's mood turned sour, "Why would I wanna be some clown in tights? If you all want to go around parading like idiots, fine but leave me out of it."

He then got up, grabbed his bag and walked to the door.

"I don't feel well, I'm going home."

_My father told me I could be a different kind of hero, following the path of a knight. Makai Knights are supposed to hunt Horrors and protect humanity from them, however, we are not supposed to be saviors; we are not heroes. But in recent years, I found myself being okay with that because…_

All the students sneered as the green-haired boy left.

"What's his problem?" a girl asked.

"Acting all high and mighty like that, that Quirkless loser."

"Let it go."

That last comment came from Bakugo oddly enough. Everyone turned to the blonde in surprise as he sat back down.

"He wouldn't be a hero even if he _did_ have a quirk."

"Why? Because none of us would be as good as you?" another student griped.

Bakugo looked out the window, his thoughts seemed far away.

"No, it's because…"

Izuku had just walked out of the gates, a scowl still on his face.

"…Deku hates heroes."

_**GARO:**_

_**Wolves of U.A.**_

* * *

*** Leon Luis' attire after reclaiming the armor.**

**** Imagine a fusion between classic Garo armor and Leon Luis' from the anime.**

**This is a little experimental chapter to see how well received it be. I only recently got into MHA and Garo and wondered how well it would mesh.**


	2. Chapter 2

"Speech"

_Narration_

'_Thoughts'_

"_**Horror Speech"**_

"**ALL MIGHT SPEECH"**

"**Zaruba Speech"**

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**_

* * *

A rather short, lanky, one could call him scrawny; man in a hoodie walked through the door of the meeting place. Word had gotten out about some kind of job that was looking for any bodies they could get their hands on. The interior was set up like a bar, with chairs, sofas, and tables with a good thirty people already there.

"You here for that job offer, too?" a rather a bulky man asked Scrawny.

"Yeah, you know what it's about?"

"No, no one here does but someone must be planning something big. All I do know is they are offering a lot of cash."

"I haven't seen this many people since before I dropped out of school."

"Must be gathering whatever strong Quirks they can find. What can you do?"

"My Quirk allows me to bend all light around me; I call it Eclipse. Depending on the size of the area I wanna cover determines how dark I can make it. I can make this room pitch black or a city block as dark as sunset."

"_**What an interesting ability you have."**_

Every single one of the crooks shot up in alarm, frantically looking around.

"Who said that?"

"_**Mind if I take it for a spin?"**_

The scrawny man whipped around but found nothing but a mirror. Suddenly his reflection changed into some kind of black, skeletal demon before a black miasma shot out and entered his eyes and mouth; the other criminals stood back in fear as he screamed. When it had stopped, scrawny appeared unharmed.

"So…"

The crooks slowly approached the guy, Quirks at the ready. Scrawny turned around, eyes glowing a sinister red.

"So…HUNGRY!"

* * *

"Midoriya? Hates heroes?" a heavily muscled boy asked.

"I thought he was the biggest fanboy in Japan," a girl with horns added.

Bakugo eyed all the students before turning back to the teacher.

"Hey teach, you heard about the Victory Scandal, right?"

This brought a round of confusion among the classroom before the teacher answered.

"The Victory Scandal? What does….oh," The teacher glanced at the door Izuku left through before turning back to the blonde, "Was it someone…"

"His father," Bakugo answered.

"Hmm, now it makes sense," the educator grimaced in understanding.

More confusion but limited to the students this time.

"Do any of you remember the former Pro-Hero, Victory?" The educator asked his class.

"Victory?"

"Wait, I think I remember him. He almost took the top spot from All Might."

"Oh yeah. But he kinda dropped off the radar all of a sudden."

"Yeah and for good reason," Whatever the teacher was going to say next was abruptly stopped by the sound of several students and teachers shouting the hallway. One student opened the door to find a proverbial stampede heading out.

"What's going on?" the student called to another passing by.

"Arisu Raidou is doing a farewell concert today!"

Arisu Raidou was a pop idol who began her career at the age of 10 and was an overnight success. Having sold millions of records and performed many concerts, she had built up quite a massive fan base among the populace in just a few years. Alas, fame is fleeting and her popularity was beginning to wane. But rather than cling to a sinking ship just to stay relevant like other celebrities, she decided to go out on a high note.

"She got a recommendation to go to U.A. High next year. After today, she's gonna be devoting all her time to becoming a hero. This'll be her last live concert!"

"Class Dismissed!" the teacher declared; the students wasted no time leaving, joining the crowd in the hallway.

* * *

Around the same time, Izuku had just entered a tunnel on his way home. His tired mind kept drifting back to what his classmates had said about him (again.) He had to put up with this kind of ridicule since he was discovered to be Quirkless. Even those with the most asinine of Quirks looked down on him under the pretense that they at least _have_ a Quirk. They would show off their powers to him, mocking him that he can't do anything remotely that they can. He did take some delight in the irony that they would be no better than he was in the face of Horrors, though. Nevertheless, it had seemed their teasing only gotten worse with time, even the cliques that would be at the bottom of the social ladder would bully him. The more the memories came back, the more his listless mind boiled in anger until he threw his right fist at the adjacent wall; creating a spider web of cracks within a shallow crater that stretched the height of the wall.

"Sometimes I wish they knew what the real dangers were in this world and just how useless their precious Quirks are against it."

"**Careful, Izuku…"** Zaruba warned his partner.

"I know, I know; it's not our place to judge them. Doesn't mean I can't have an opinion."

"**As long as you don't act on that opinion."**

Izuku only gave in incoherent grumble as he resumed his journey home. However, it's a well-known fact that sleep deprivation dulls the senses, hence why he didn't notice the mass of sludge emerging from the manhole cover behind him; until it was too late. The sludge leapt at the boy, restraining him as it tried to force itself down his throat. Izuku tried to pry him off but couldn't get a decent grip due to the villain's liquid body, not to mention that said villain was restraining his other arm. He couldn't make out what the mass of goo was saying while suffocating him, he did catch things like 'using his body,' 'not knowing _he_ was in town' and 'getting out of the city.' Izuku was beginning to feel weak, his heart thumping erratically in his ears.

Suddenly, the manhole cover the villain emerged from came flying off.

"**HAVE NO FEAR, YOU ARE SAFE."**

The mass of sludge whipped around to find his pursuer had caught up to him.

"**BECAUSE I AM HERE."**

The last thing Izuku saw before he passed out was the silhouette of massive man followed by a loud cry of…

"**TEXAS SMAAAAAAASH!"**

He was brought back to the realm of consciousness by someone lightly slapping his face. He opened his bloodshot, dark ringed eyes to find none other than the Number 1 Hero in the World, Symbol of Peace himself: All Might.

"**YOU WERE OUT FOR A WHILE, THOUGHT WE LOST YOU THERE,"** he said boisterously.

Izuku then pushed himself into a sitting position as All Might continued.

"**YOU SEEM ALRIGHT. SORRY ABOUT THAT BACK THERE, I DIDN'T MEAN FOR YOU TO BE CAUGHT UP IN MY JUSTICING. USUALLY, I PAY MORE ATTENTION TO KEEPING BYSTANDERS SAFE. BUT IT TURNS OUT THIS CITY'S SEWER SYSTEM IS PRETTY DIFFICULT TO NAVIGATE,"** he said with a hearty laugh.

Izuku lightly scowled and began to pick up his things that had fallen out when that villain had attacked him. All Might then held up a large water bottle, only now it was filled with something else. It took the green-haired boy a moment to realize that it was actually the sludge villain from earlier.

"**ANYWAY, THANK YOU! YOU WERE A BIG HELP. I'VE CAPTURED THE EVIL-DOER WHILE YOU WERE OUT."**

The younger male didn't seem to pay attention as he kept putting things back into his bag. All Might handed him his last notebook, marking one spot inside with his finger. Izuku took it and opened to find All Might had autographed two whole pages.

"You signed my notebook?" he asked as the Pro-Hero gave a big thumbs up.

"**A LTTLE SOMETHING FOR YOUR TROUBLES, YOUNG MAN. YOU CAN BRAG TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT IT!"**

Izuku then ripped out the pages, crumpled it up and threw it into the nearest trash can. As for All Might, he just stood there in awkward bewilderment at the notion of someone callously rejecting his autograph.

"**WELL, **_**THAT**_** WAS UNEXPECTED,"** he muttered.

"Not that I don't appreciate the help but I'm not interested in your autograph."

"**I KINDA GET THE IMPRESSION THAT YOU ARE NOT PARTICUALRLY FOND OF ME."**

"Heroes in general."

"**I SEE."**

All Might then placed the bottle in his pants side pocket as the boy got into a kneeling position, one hand on the knee.

"**IN ANY CASE, I'VE GOTTA GET THIS GUY TO THE POLICE SO THEY CAN TAKE CARE OF HIM."**

When Izuku pushed back to his feet, he then noticed something about his hand, something was missing.

'_Wait where? Where is-?'_ his mind wondered as he looked around

He finally caught sight of what the issue was, his Madogu practically drowning in that sludge villain.

"AH, ZARUBA!"

All Might then took to the air in a mighty leap, however, something felt off. He looked down to find the kid had grabbed onto his leg.

"**HEY, HEY, HEY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"**

"THAT VILLAIN, HE HAS SOMETHING!" Izuku screamed

"**ALRIGHT, CALM DOWN AND HOLD ON!"**

The hero then held Izuku's shirt collar to make sure he didn't fall ofwhile searching for a place to land, a small cough escaped his mouth; as did a drop of blood.

'_Shit!'_

He found a moderately sized apartment complex and aimed for there; landing with a loud 'thud!' Izuku then dropped to the floor panting heavily.

"**THAT WAS VERY RECKLESS," **All Might scolded,** "NOW WHAT WAS IT YOU WERE SAY-"**

He then seized up as smoke came billowing off him.

'_No, no, no! Not now!'_

The green-haired boy watched the mountain of muscle that is All Might almost literally deflate until he was nothing more than a skeleton of a man with unkempt blonde hair and a rather unapproachable frown.

'_Well_, that _was unexpected,'_ Izuku thought to himself.

"All Might?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's me," he answered before almost vomiting blood.

"What the hell is this?"

"You know how guys at the pool suck it in to try and look buff? I'm like that."

"I guess there's a story behind this?"

All Might sighed in resignation.

"Yeah, just promise me you won't tell anyone or spread it online."

The blond hero then pulled up one side of his shirt, revealing a jagged looking scar.

"Nasty right? I got this five years ago taking down a villain. My respiratory system was shredded and I lost my stomach. The surgeries trying to fix it wore me out. Now I can only do hero work for three hours a day. Rest of the time, this is what I look like."

"I don't recall you getting in a fight that put you in the hospital."

"I thought you didn't like heroes."

"I have a low opinion, doesn't mean I don't pay attention to the news."

"Yeah well, you never heard about it because I wanted to keep it quiet."

Izuku's expression soured further; having a feeling that he knew where this was headed.

"I'm supposed to be the guy who's always smiling, the Symbol of Peace. People say I keep smiling because I'm not afraid anything, when in reality; I'm absolutely terrified. I just smile to hide it. I got into the hero business because I wanted people to never have to fear anything anymore and smile with the knowledge that they are safe. If they found out what happened and how scared I really am, then they all lose that smile."

Izuku softened a bit, hearing the sincerity in the Pro-Hero's voice.

"Despite my injury and others telling me to retire, I kept going. Doing as much as I can within my time limit."

"So you hide in the crowd when you run out of time? Sounds kinda pathetic to me. Downright hypocritical."

All Might said nothing to that, silently agreeing with the boy.

"Anyway, you said something about this villain having something?" he asked.

"Oh right, that villain…" his vision got blurry and the world started to spin.

With so little sleep, the shock of potentially losing his partner combined with that impromptu flight; the green-haired boy was running on pure adrenaline and he'd reached the tail end of the shot after All Might's story.

"That…that villain stole… stole something of…" Izuku immediately passed out after the rush had ran out. All Might ran up to the downed youth and checked him.

'_He's out cold. The kid _did_ look like he hadn't slept in a while now.' _All Might pulled out the bottle and saw what the boy had been after._ 'That ring in there must be what he was talking about; must be very important to him for such a creepy looking thing.' _

He replaced the bottle into his pant pocket.

'_I gotta get this guy to the nearest police station, they should be able to get it out without any problems but I don't want to leave such a young kid alone here.'_

All Might picked the young boy up, carrying him piggyback.

'_Hope you appreciate this, Hero Hater.'_

* * *

It had taken a few hours but the Horror finally caught a grip on this 'Quirk' power. Now was for the final test; it activated its new Quirk and added a bit of its own power. With that done, it walked to the window, transformed its arm into its true state and thrusted it into the sunlight. The results were most satisfying to the monster in human skin, as a sinister grin formed on the Horror's face. It walked out the door, not caring it left the door wide open where passersby who could see the mess he left. After walking for some time, it came across a rather large gathering of humans, cheering for another on some stage.

"All that practice has made me hungry again."

* * *

Izuku's eyes slid open to the sight of an office ceiling. Out of his peripheral vision, he saw a few police officers, meaning he was in a police station. Finally, standing in the corner was the gaunt form of the number one hero in the world, All Might. Easily making the connection as to how he got here, Izuku sat up; feeling a little refreshed after that brief nap.

"You were out for a while. I didn't wanna leave you alone while unconscious."

Izuku muttered a 'thanks' before the hero held out his hand; Zaruba between his fingers.

"We managed to get this out of the bottle, I assume this is what you were talking about earlier?"

"Yeah, it's a… a family heirloom," Izuku responded before taking the ring and returning it to its place on his left hand.

There was a moment of awkward silence before All Might spoke again.

"Did you want to contact you mother, young Midoriya?"

Izuku glanced at the skeleton man, curious of how he learned his name. Said skeleton man picked up on this.

"An officer ran your student ID through the database."

That explains that.

"No, I was heading home anyway."

"I also heard from one of the officers and, for whatever its worth, I'm sorry about your father."

"That's what everyone says," Izuku muttered as he got up, grabbed his bag and made for the door. As he nearly passed All Might, the blond placed a gentle hand on the green-haired boy's shoulder.

"I actually _do_ understand your feelings a little. If I were in your shoes; I'd probably feel the same. But… we're not all like how Victory was. A lot of us really just want to help people with everything that we got. I hope that, maybe, you see that one day."

Izuku said nothing to that as All Might removed his hand, allowing the boy to leave without resistance. He kept going until he was on the street a few yards away from the station before he looked back. He could make out a blond man rushing out of the station, most likely All Might off to another scene. The boy thought back on what the hero told him of why he got into the hero business and why he keeps going despite of his injury. While he may have been rather harsh on the guy, All Might was the first hero to earn back a little of Izuku's respect. It was about this time Zaruba spoke up after a long while of silence.

"**That was certainly an experience."**

"You alright?" he asked holding up his hand.

"**I thought I was gonna suffocate in that walking sewage."**

"How? You don't even have lungs," Izuku asked with a wry grin.

"**It's not the point, it's the princip-"**

"The principle?"

Zaruba didn't respond, something that made Izuku uneasy.

"**Izuku, I'm sensing a Horror. But…"**

"What is it?"

"**For me to sense it so well like this only happens at night, when the Horrors are at their strongest."**

"But it's midday"

"**I know, it doesn't make any sense."**

Izuku's features hardened.

"Where is it?"

* * *

The scene before Izuku was not too unfamiliar to anyone living in this day and age: a small fire, wrecked equipment and stage and heroes facing an adversary holding a hostage. The single twist in this often repeated scenario was that the one holding the hostage was no villain but a monster from a nightmarish realm, a Horror. The Horror appeared as a large, brown raptor-like humanoid bird, but it had a hole in its chest, filled with swirling dark energy, and its exposed skull looks like the skull of several birds fused together.

"A Horror… in broad daylight?"

"**And it's Stolas of all Horrors. In the darkness of night, it drives its limbs into shadows to strike from any possible angle. The darker the shadow, the stronger the attack. It should be at its weakest, especially since its noon when the sun is at its apex."**

"Then how is it here?"

"**I don't know."**

"We'll worry about it later. We got a Horror to slay," the young Makai Knight declared as he reached for something in his bag.

* * *

Bakugo stared in fascination and shock. Barely a few hours ago, he was semi-dragged along to see the last Arisu Raidou concert; of which he was secretly a fan. And he couldn't deny that he found her cute; he would out loud but not in his mind. Then some scrawny nobody just casually walks onto the stage, throws security like they were dolls and transforms into the freakiest, most grotesque bird monster he had ever seen before grabbing Arisu off her feet and looked as if to eat her. Then the local Pro-Heroes showed up but the freak didn't even flinch when Death Arms punch him in the face. The other heroes threw their Quirks at the thing but he just shrugged them off like they were nothing; a new hero with a gigantification Quirk was sucker punched and was instantly out of the fight. The bird monster seemed to find it funny and started challenging anyone, Hero or not, to take his hostage from his hand.

Bakugo was about to take that challenge before he shouted in surprise and pain when someone had used his head as a jumping platform.

Stolas was preoccupied with taunting the Pro-Heroes, taunting them into trying to take the girl from it, that he didn't see someone coming down from above until it was nearly too late. It paid little mind to it since whatever Quirks these humans had were hardly a threat to it. That arrogance came back to haunt it when it let out an inhuman roar of pain, having its arm cut in half; the newcomer revealed to be a boy now holding a sword shaped like a Chinese Jian. But such a sword should be useless against it, unless…

"_Soul Metal, he's a Makai Knight!"_

Stolas grabbed its severed arm and reattached it then roared at the young knight who dared to interfere. Izuku took a stance as Arisu crawled away but Stolas wasn't about to let its meal escape. A quick swing of its arm fired a volley of bladed feathers but the green-haired boy deflected each one. This would normally be a good time to make an escape but Arisu was rooted in place at the battle about to take place.

"**We need to do something about those people, we can't be seen."**

"No time. This thing will just go after them, we gotta take it down here and now."

This exchange did not go unnoticed by the pop idol or a few in earshot.

'_Who is he talking to? And who is talking back for that matter?'_

The two charged at each other with Stolas taking a swipe at the boy only to be blocked by his blade. The Horror tried another overhead attack to which the green-haired knight blocked with his arm then followed into a Judo throw off the stage. Just as Stolas hit the ground, Izuku jumped after it, leading into a dropkick into the monster's abdomen; fracturing the concrete surface beneath them with the force of the impact.

Within the crowd, students and teachers of Aldera Junior High watched the spectacle in awe. While many had identified the unknown 'hero's' clothes as that of their school uniform, he was moving around too much to get a good look as to his identity. Some had commented that the youth resembled one Izuku Midoriya but many dismissed that claim under the impression that 'a Quirkless nobody wouldn't be able to anything like this guy.' Bakugo didn't hear nor paid any attention to his classmates' gossip, he was more focused on the guy who used him as a literal stepping stone.

'_I'm gonna blast that fucker to kingdom come for that!'_

Off to the side, All Might watched the fight in fascination. The kid he met earlier was fighting this creature on even ground whereas the other heroes struggled to even hurt it; even the new kid, Mt. Lady, taken out in one hit. And yet this boy who had a clear disdain for heroes was going toe-to-toe with the monster with but low to mid-tier level of super strength and a sword and seemed to be winning.

The person of interest had just delivered a powerful kick then back flipped away from the monster. While still in the air, Zaruba surveyed the scene and relayed his thoughts to his partner.

"**The Watchdog is not gonna like this."**

"I am a Makai Knight, I took an oath to protect humans from Horrors. There's a Horror in front of us and humans behind us and I will do what I am sworn to do, consequences be damned!"

The youth then drew a circle of light while still in mid-air, summoning his armor before landing on his feet. The crowd and Pro-Heroes gaped in surprise; Death Arms and Kamui Woods instantly recognized the familiar golden clad warrior as the former of the two shouted.

"It's that gold guy from last night!"

"_**GARO!?"**_

Garo took a low stance, sword arm back with the blade pointed forward, his free arm held up in a guard as the blade edge scraped against the bracer shield (like Ryuga Dougai does.) Stolas crouched low before releasing a roar and charged at the knight. Garo did the same and the two clashed, unleashing a mild shockwave upon the two colliding. Garo slashing at the bird Horror with said monster using bladed feathers on its arm as a makeshift weapon. A surprise knee to the stomach forced Stolas to hunch over, allowing the golden knight to wrap his arm around its neck and flip the monster onto his back. The knight then went for a stabbing attack only for the bird monster to lash out with its feet talons. As the fight carried on, Garo kept thinking back on something Zaruba mentioned earlier about this Horror; that it could use the shadows as a means to attack from anywhere.

So why hadn't it done it already?

A glance at the environment made the answer clear: Stolas, in its eagerness, had failed to take into account that shadows are different in the day. While it could now freely move around despite the purifying sun rays, but that was about it. It couldn't utilize its powers effectively with so few disconnected shadows in an open area as this. And said Horror was becoming very aware of this shortcoming. Garo, feeling it best to before Stolas starts to become desperate, pushed the monster away and drew his Madou Lighter. After lighting it with a flick of the wrist, he ran it across the blade; engulfing the blade in a green blaze. The golden knight twirled his sword, a trail of fire following it, before charging again at the Horror.

What happened next for the crowd watching had to be the biggest middle finger to physics they had ever seen. Garo then threw his sword to the side, turning it into a burning saw blade, before jumping over the Horror. The aforementioned blade arced around before slashing Stolas as it passed by. To their shock it came back around and slashed it again. Then it did it again. And again. And again! And _again_! During this, Garo had landed on one of the still standing stage supports… perpendicularly… as in he was standing parallel to the ground. His sword then returned to his hand, still ablaze, before he pushed off the scaffolding and gliding down, his cape clearly not acting as wings or anything of the sort, and delivering a large slash through the Horror. Skidding to halt as he passed, Garo kept his sword arm outstretched.

Both Garo and Stolas were still for but a moment before the latter erupted into flames; roaring in pain and thrashing about. It was then the golden knight noticed that Arisu was still present.

"Why are you still here? Get out of here, now!" Garo scolded the pop idol.

The Horror suddenly lunged at the golden knight, said knight brandished his sword for one last strike before both stopped. Why?

"**YOU WERE RIGHT, I REALLY AM A HYPOCRITE." **

Because All Might was now here; the hulking hero blocking the burning appendage from its intended target.

"**I TOLD YOU THAT THERE ARE HEROES WHO HELP THOSE IN NEED WITH ALL THAT THEY ARE. AND YET, I WASN'T PRACTICING WHAT I PREACHED!"**

The Pro-Hero threw the monster's offending limb away, blood seeping from his mouth.

"**REAL HEROES PUT IT ALL ON THE LINE FOR JUSTICE!"**

Garo saw All Might wind up for one of his famous punches. He quickly grabbed the pop idol by the back of her outfit before throwing her to the crowd; right into Bakugo's arms.

"**DETROOOOOOIIIIIIIIIT…" **

He then stabbed his sword into the ground, bracing for what was to come. Stolas came back for one last attack.

"**SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!"**

The force of the punch created a fierce whirlwind that fed the magic flames until it had become a tornado of green fire; Stolas roaring in agony as it was incinerated. All the Heroes present had to shield the bystanders from the localized squall. Garo was held in place by his sword while holding a firm grip to keep from flying away.

When it had all subsided, nothing remained of the monster save for a red hot mark in the pavement. A roll of thunder drew everyone's attention to the sky as rain began to fall. Death Arms returned his gaze to All Might and the golden warrior near him.

"He changed the weather," he said in awe.

The rain picked up, starting to cool the superheated concrete, creating steam. At the same time, the Garo armor disengaged, leaving a panting Izuku exposed to the world had the rising steam not obscured some of his features. The steam thickened, forcing Mt. Lady to fan it away with her hands, only to reveal the boy had disappeared again. Death Arms sighed in defeat before muttering to himself.

"He got away again, what the hell is going on here?"

The television crews went into full news mode, swarming the heroes and the rescued idol. Each questioning what had happened? What was that monster? Was that boy a new hero or sidekick?

Bakugo, however, was focused on the spot where the golden armored warrior had been. The steam may have been thick but he could definitely make out the warrior's hairstyle when his armor disappeared; and it was hair that looked very familiar.

'_Deku?'_

* * *

It had been an hour after the Horror attack at the concert. Izuku was now walking home as the sun set.

"I can't believe I dozed off after that fight," he muttered with another yawn.

"**Well, you were running on fumes and adrenaline for the second time today so, it's no surprise to me. Though I highly recommend you don't do that again, it's not healthy."**

"No argument there. And I thought you said that Stolas thing was trouble."

"**I said he was strongest at night, I never said he was smart."**

Izuku had no response for that and just kept walking.

"**We still have to hear it from the Watchdog about exposing yourself to the public back there,"** Zaruba reminded the young knight.

"I know but I really don't care right now; I just wanna climb into bed and sleep for a month."

Suddenly, a familiar blond hero came skidding into the street.

"**I AM HERE!"**

"All Might? What are you doing here?"

"**HAHAHA! I STAND FOR JUSTICE, NOT SOUNDBYTES! FOR I, I AM ALL MI—BLAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRGH!"**

"Take it easy, champ; we've both had a long day," Izuku said as he pat the deflated Hero on the back as said hero hacked and coughed. Once the Number 1 Hero got it under control, he turned to the young Makai Knight

"Young man, I wanted to talk to you about what happened back there and also-" All Might began before Izuku held up his hand.

"Hold that thought," he said then pointed behind All Might.

At the end of the street stood the maid attendant of the Watchdog Center, her hands clasped in front as she spoke with a tone that betrayed nothing.

"Golden Knight Garo and Number 1 Hero All Might," the latter flinched at someone else knowing his secret, "The Watchdog wishes to see you both; it's urgent."

* * *

Kagero Okuta, known in the underworld as Giren, tsked at the sight before him. Cops had surrounded the meeting place while bringing out body bags that seemed not even half-full. Media vultures buzzing around asking questions and facing cameras; some pointing to the opened door where blood practically painted the inside walls. He pulled out his bunny phone and dialed a certain number.

"We have an issue, the meeting place for the first batch of guys was turned into a slaughterhouse," he said into the phone, "No, I didn't leave anything there that could lead back to you."

"We got a live one!" one cop called out, catching Okuta's attention.

Being carried to a stretcher was a tall, scruffy-looking man with green hair and thick lips. Okuta knew there was the possibility the schmuck might talk and the cops could piece something together with evidence of so many low-ranked villains meeting up for some reason. But his client wanted to be as discrete as possible so he made sure that the offer was kept extremely vague, just in case. He suddenly recalled another matter his client wanted for him to do.

"We may be able to salvage this. You still need a volunteer for that 'special project' of yours, right?"

* * *

**A/N: **

**Fun Fact: The English voice actor for Izuku, Justin Briner also played Alfonso in the Garo anime; Alfonso was the golden knight for a time. Plus he was in Garo: Crimson Moon as Minamoto no Yorinobu. How's that for Irony?**


	3. Chapter 3

"Speech"

_Narration_

'_Thoughts'_

"_**Horror Speech"**_

"**ALL MIGHT SPEECH"**

"**Zaruba Speech"**

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**_

* * *

At the Midoriya household, Inko sat in the living room; book in hand. Time had changed her a bit drastically from the slim woman of Izuku's youth to a portly one, rather surprising for a Makai Priestess. In her heyday, she was quite accomplished, having developed spellcasting techniques without a Madou Brush that earned her fame in the order and the eye of the father of her child. However, she was also known to be rather reckless in hunts and had gotten hurt numerous times to the point that the pain from the accumulated injuries became too much and was forced to retire. Today was one she of many where she would kick back and read one of her favorite books but, as one individual noted; she had been on that same page for several minutes and her eyes and mind seemed elsewhere. She was drawn back to earth when a small cup and saucer was placed on the table next to her, she glanced at it then to the one who place it there; a middle-aged in a neatly pressed suit and glasses with a warm smile.

"Peppermint tea, it does wonders for anxiety."

She gave the man a small smile as she took a sip.

"Thank you, Gonza. It really helps."

"I'd hazard a guess that you are concerned about Master Izuku?"

"I can't help but worry. He's had 9 Horror hunts this week alone."

Gonza winced a little at that comment before he sighed, catching her attention, and said, "Better make that 10."

Inko looked up at the butler, puzzled, before he presented his phone; which had a live news feed active.

_/-nown individual waltzed on stage during the performance and took the pop idol hostage after throwing security away. Local heroes attempted to intervene until the assailant transformed into what witness describe as a "freaky bird monster." Said monster kept the heroes at bay until the sudden arrival of what appears to be a junior high school student wielding a sword. Arisu Raidou was freed while the young man fought the monster and then appeared to transform into golden armor. The battle continued up until the armored individual lit his sword on fire and set the bird assailant ablaze. It finally came to a close when All Might stepped in and ended it with one of his special attacks. However, before authorities could question the young man, he disappeared in the confusion./_

The screen shifted to an image, likely taken from a cellphone, of a very familiar golden armor of a certain Makai Knight. It then changes to the young idol.

_/I didn't get to see his face before he put that armor on but I think that thing called him "Garo."/_

_/While the heroes were victorious, many are asking "What was that bird creature?" "Who is this 'Garo?" and "Where did he come from?"/_

The Midoriya matriarch's face fell. It was bad enough that a Makai Knight was caught on camera and in front of ordinary people but the fact it was her own son made it worse. The news anchor stopped for moment to listen to her earpiece.

_/This just in, it seems that Japan is not the only one with a young man in armor…/_

"Oh great, now what?"

* * *

"Am I here to get yelled at?" Izuku asked as stabbed his sword into the wolf statue.

"Under normal circumstances, yes, you would be, however, that is not the case this time. Your battle with the Horror Stolas was not an isolated incident, there have been other attacks in full public view across the globe. "

"Speaking of feather face, how is it that it was able to walk around in broad daylight?"

"We're not sure yet"

"Tell me something, the last thing anyone needs is Horrors even during the day!" Izuku demanded indignantly.

As this was going, All Might kept looking between the two totally lost in confusion. That maid dragged him and the boy to some remote area of the city, a wall of all places, before Midoriya held up his ring and said wall opened up into a long dark hall. If that weren't enough, they entered a room with a woman that would make Uwabami and Midnight jealous and now, young Midoriya was talking to her like she was his boss or something.

"Can someone explain what is going on here?" he asked.

The two glanced at him before Izuku gestured to the Watchdog; the latter of which turned to the No.1 Hero.

"Since time out of mind, humanity has been prey to demons of darkness known as Horrors. These vile beings enter our world through gates, created by the vices of humanity: greed, envy, despair, anger, pride, you name it. They possess those with these evils, devouring their souls and assuming their identities. They then prowl the night, searching for people to feed on."

"What does that have to do with you?"

"We are known as the Makai Order. We have been around nearly as long as the Horrors first came through. Our duty is to protect humanity from these monsters, hunting them down to the ends of the Earth. We deploy agents in the form of Makai Priests and Makai Knights."

"So then young Midoriya here, he's…"

"He has inherited the title of the Golden Knight, you could say he's our version of you."

"You'd force children to fight these monsters?!" All Might bellowed in shock.

"No one forced me to do anything," Izuku interrupted, "The choice to be a Makai Knight was mine and mine alone."

"His father, the previous Garo, originally intended to pass his armor to someone else and spare his son from this life. However, that changed," Fenris added.

"Why would he change his mind?"

"Because I'm Quirkless."

That little comment gave Izuku All Might's undivided attention.

"When I was a kid, all I wanted was to be a hero like you. Yet at four years old, my quirk still hadn't come in. So I went to the doctor's and they told me I was in the minority that would never develop a Quirk."

Izuku then held up his left hand, gazing at his ring.

"It felt like my whole world fell apart, I was picked on once all the kids found out and even their parents would say I wouldn't amount to anything. Then my dad came up to me and asked if I wanted to be a different kind of hero by becoming a Makai Knight."

"And you agreed without knowing what you were getting into?"

"I _did_ know, he told me exactly what I would end up doing; sometimes I think my dad _wanted_ me to say 'no' that day. But I still stand by my decision and have never regretted it."

All Might took a moment to digest everything that the young man and the woman had told him.

'_These people, they've been fighting against monsters like that bird thing for so long? And this kid, their best agent and he goes into battle with nothing but a sword and his armor; hard to believe he does it all without a Quir-wait a minute!'_

"Hold on, if you don't have a Quirk; how were you able to throw that monster around like that?"

"Oh that? Makai Knights are trained to superhuman levels to compete with Horrors. What you saw before was pure muscle."

'_Jeez, these guys don't mess around,'_ the symbol of peace thought with a sweat drop.

"**As you can see, Makai Knights are thoroughly prepared; with or without Quirks."**

"Yeah, no kidding," agreed All Might, only to perk up in realization.

"Wait, who said that?" he asked looking around.

"**I did."**

Izuku sighed before holding up his left hand, pointing his skull ring at the puzzled Pro Hero.

"**Hello"**

"THE RING IS TALKING?!" he exclaimed, hacking up blood.

"**The name is Zaruba and my thanks for getting me out of that living cesspool."**

'_I don't know how much more of this I can take today!'_ All Might thought wearily.

"While this is entertaining to watch, shall we get back to the main topic?" Fenris asked.

"Right, how was that fugly bird able to act unhindered despite it being midday?" Izuku asked hotly.

"Some of our agents and allies are looking into it now. When we have new information, we'll let you know. Another pressing matter is that the public not only saw the Horror and you in armor but others as well across the world. With our numbers stretched so thin, containing this is becoming impossible."

"And the senate?"

"An emergency meeting was called to discuss options, however, I think it's safe to say that they are seriously considering what we spoke of this morning."

'_Fuck me.'_ Izuku thought to himself.

"And I hate to say it but I'm starting to agree."

'_Fuck me_ sideways_!'_

"Sorry kid, but I'm afraid discretion is a luxury we can no longer afford."

The young man groaned in frustration. And once again, through it all; All Might was confused.

"Excuse me again but," he butted in, hand raised like a student, "What exactly is this about?"

"The subject I was speaking of to Garo here is that we may have to reveal ourselves to the public and work with the governments and Hero Agencies. It's also the reason I asked you here as well," Fenris explained.

"It is?"

"Yes. As the highest ranking Hero in the world, we would appreciate any cooperation and aid in the transition from our original clandestine position into a more open one should it come to that. "

"This is quite a lot to take in. Hypothetically, what if I turned it down?"

"We'll simply carry on without you," She said as if it were obvious, surprising the blond Hero.

"That's it? Not even gonna hold my secret hostage if I say no?"

"Please, we're not evil. And holding it over you doesn't benefit us in the long run."

"Speaking of which, you and that maid were awfully calm about seeing me like this."

"That's because my fellow Watchdogs and other members of the order already knew."

"Wait," this time Izuku butted in, "You already knew about this? How come no one said anything?"

"At the time, it wasn't important to your mission. And I figured you wouldn't have cared given your 'opinion' on Pro-Heroes."

Izuku frowned at the flippant answer.

"I'd say that concludes this meeting. All Might, do take some time to think on our proposal; we will await your answer. And as for you, Garo, run along home and get some rest. Passing out twice in one day is very concerning."

"I'm not even gonna question how you know about that, too," Izuku muttered as he turned and left, the skeletal frame of All Might following behind him.

* * *

A short walk and closing door/wall later, All Might turning around and knocking on the second part; the younger of the duo made for home.

"Young Midoriya, how exactly am I supposed to find you people when I come to a decision? That woman never explained that part."

"My guess? You come find me. You already saw my student ID so you know where I go."

'_I suppose that makes sense though I better not show up in my muscle form. The last thing I need is questions of why I'm visiting a junior high school out of the blue.'_

"Now if you'll excuse me, my bed is calling me," Izuku said as he pointed his thumb into the distance.

"**And a mother at home who is gonna have a serious conniption about today,"** Zaruba added.

"You just had to say it," the young Makai Knight sighed out as he walked away.

As the two (one boy and one talking ring [still trying to wrap his mind around that) left, All Might kept his gaze on the young man. He thought back to what had happened today: what he saw, what he heard; all of it seemed too fantastic to be real. But most of all, this young man before him, with no special powers, had risked his life numerous times to protect people from evil monsters and asked for absolutely nothing in return, no recognition, no fortune; nothing. All Might felt a twinge in his heart, this boy reminded him of why he pursued the life he did in the first place. Then another thought crossed his mind…

'_Is he the one I've been searching for?'_

* * *

School the following day was an odd change of pace. Rather than taunting him, most of Izuku's classmates were engrossed in gossip about the 'new hero' Garo. Tons of questions flew around like: 'Who was he?' 'Where did he come from?' 'Where did he get that armor?' There was even talk how he may be one of the students here since many saw that he wore their school uniform.

"**How cute, you have fans,"** Zaruba whispered into his ear, jokingly.

"Shut it," Izuku whispered back.

A few students, however, were casting glances at the young knight; particularly those who tended to hang out with Bakugo. The aforementioned teen was glaring, as if he was searching for something, at Izuku. It soon all came to a stop when the homeroom teacher came in.

"Alright, settle down. I know it was a rather thrilling day yesterday but it's time to get back into it."

"Hey teach, is it true that this Garo guy is a student here?" one student with a long nose asked, catching Izuku's attention.

"I don't know nor am I at liberty to discuss that."

"I heard one guy said he thought it was Midoriya," another with stretching fingers said as he thumbed at said boy.

"No way it was Midoriya, that guy had super strength and some kind of telekinesis Quirk," a third with sharp teeth added, prompting the rest of the class to laugh.

'_Here we go again,'_ Izuku thought, rolling his eyes.

* * *

Commissioner General Tanzawa felt the tension in the air as the various ministers entered the room, the Japanese cabinet had called an emergency meeting in regards to the recent development in the spike of Horrors; even the Emperor was present. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't on edge as well, to have one of history's most terrible secrets thrown out into the open is very serious, thoughts of the concerns and panic it's no doubt causing made him fear it will only get worse. The last person to enter was not a minister but the senatorial Watchdog of the region: Amon, who sat down next to him.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," the Prime Minister began, "As you are all aware, there's been a number of incidents happening across the globe."

"Yes, the monster attacks and those armored individuals that fought them," The Agriculture Minister said, "Do we know anything about them?"

"I have a question as well," one of the younger ministers cut in before gesturing to Amon, "Who is he?"

"This is the Watchdog Amon, he is a representative of the Makai Order," The Minister of Defense answered, "And he is directly involved with the knights you all saw."

"Knights?"

"What's he talking about?"

"Settle down, everyone. Everything will be explained," The Prime Minister commanded.

"I am a member of the Makai Order, an organization that spans the globe with but a single mission: to defend humanity against the monstrous beings known as Horrors," Amon said.

"Horrors?"

"The monsters you have seen on the news facing our warriors, the Makai Knights. They are drawn to our world by the vices of humans. The possess those with dark hearts, swallowing their souls and assume their identity before stalking the night for more victims."

Many of the older Cabinet members remained stone-faced, having already known but the newer, younger ones seemed shocked and confused. One of them then spoke up.

"How long has this been going on?"

"Since the dawn of civilization."

"Why are we only hearing about this now?"

"In the early days, everyone knew. However, as the population began to grow in tandem with the darker human aspects, it began to become difficult to control as the Horrors began to grow in numbers. In order to combat this, we opted to erase witnesses' memories and remove evidence of the Horrors. Any we missed would be written off as making it up. Eventually, some records of Horrors became the inspiration for human myths like vampires and werewolves and such."

"Why don't we just have the numerous Heroes handle the problem?" another of the younger ministers asked.

"We learned early on that Horrors are resistant or even immune to most Quirks. Despite their still unknown origins, Quirks are still rooted in science and only something as supernatural as the Horrors themselves can harm them."

"Which brings us back to the topic of this meeting," the Prime Minister said, "Recently, Horror activity has been on the rise. The Makai Order is stretched rather thin and maintaining the confidentiality of the situation has now taken a serious blow. Not only are the numbers rising but some have even displayed abilities they shouldn't have."

Tanzawa took that as his cue to stand, "Excuse me, sir, but I believe we may have an answer to the latter of that."

"Yes, Commissioner General?"

"We managed to recover images of the Horror Garo fought before it transformed and ran the host through facial recognition. The man it possessed was small time criminal with a rap sheet of assault and robbery. What caught our attention was his Quirk: the ability to bend light and make the area he occupies dark."

"That would explain how it was able to operate unhindered in the day," Amon hummed.

"What do you mean?" asked one of the young officials.

"Aside from our weapons and spells, Horrors have only one other weakness: natural light from the sun. It severely weakens them so they stick to hunting at night."

"Indeed, and the reports of some them having extra powers they normally don't have led to our theory: that they are actively seeking out those with strong Quirks to supplement their own abilities."

"That is troubling news."

"I know, sir, however, we believe this may be only a trial run since some have either not helped or actually hinder the Horrors," Tanzawa finished before sitting back down.

"I suppose that's some comfort. The Makai Senate has decided that in order to continue with their mission, they are willing to go public and work with law enforcement and Hero agencies. As such it is very important to aid the Order in any way we can. One of the main issues is a means for them to operate without restrictions while in the field."

"Before we get into that, Prime Minister, I'd like to ask the Commissioner General something," the Minister of Education chimed in.

"You mentioned the 'Garo' individual that appeared in Musutafu, are you familiar with him?" she asked.

"Only by reputation, I've never met him in person," Tanzawa said.

"So is it true that he is a junior high student?"

"He started his third year, yes," Amon cut in.

"You would allow agents that young?" The Minister gasped.

"All knights and priests start their training young; Garo fully took up the mantle when he was twelve."

"WHAT?!"

* * *

**A/N: Done and Done! I've been so swamped at work, I barely get time to work on any of my stories.**


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